1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a cooking appliance with a glass-ceramic hob or cooktop having a plurality of cooking zones, at least one of which cooking zone is designed as a rapid cooking zone.
2. Background Information
Cooking appliances with glass-ceramic hobs are known and have been described in sufficient detail in the patent literature. In such known cooking appliances, the cooking zones are generally heated by means of electrically operated or gas-operated heating devices arranged below the glass-ceramic hob in the region of the cooking zones. These devices may be, for example, electrically operated contact or radiant heating elements or even radiant gas burners.
The cooking appliances with a full-surface flat covering of the hob with a plate made of glass-ceramic have known features of convenience. These features include, in particular, their pleasant appearance and versatility of design, which pleasant appearance and versatility of design can be adapted in an ideal manner to a respective kitchen design with highly variable patterns and coloring. It is also possible to clean the flat plate easily and without difficulty. The plate can, likewise, be used as an additional work surface or a secure place for setting things down. However, the delayed transmission of heat through the plate to the product to be heated in conjunction with a correspondingly lower utilization of energy or efficiency of the heating medium and thus the resulting longer duration up to the boiling point is often considered to be a disadvantage.
In the case of a cooking appliance with gas-operated heating devices, German Patent No. 42 27 672 C2 proposes to overcome the disadvantages described above by the use of at least one open atmospheric gas burner in addition to the customary radiant gas heating elements arranged below the hob. Open atmospheric burners transmit the heat directly and rapidly to the product to be heated, which results in short times to the boiling point. Moreover, the rapid adjustability of open atmospheric gas burners is known and appreciated within the user group. A cooking appliance fitted with at least one "rapid cooking zone" of the type described above thus combines in one unit the advantages of a cooking appliance with a glass-ceramic hob, as described above, with those of a cooking appliance with open atmospheric burners.
A comparable solution would also be desirable in the case of cooking appliances with electrically operated heating devices.